Terror in the Night
by TheLestrangeMistress
Summary: A group of people go to a murder mystery weekend for a team building exercise under the Ministry's new scheme. They go off and explore the manor when they hear a chilling scream. They all run to the direction it came from and find one of their party brutally murdered. Over the course of the weekend they try to survive the killer's clutches.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This story was started from a challenge on HPFF but never got finished. I have decided that I would love to come back to it now and post it here as well.**

The remaining survivors of the weekend had managed to barricade themselves into the manor's library and use it as their refuge. They were stunned, however, when one of the people they thought was dead slipped in the room from behind a portrait.

"Did you miss me?" they asked with a wide grin and a possessed look in their eyes.

The survivors looked at him in horror as they realised they would have to defend themselves from him without their wands, or any weapons.

 _A week ago_

The Ministry had decreed that they would be implementing a scheme which would see many different members of the community spending time together as part of what they called a 'team building' exercise. It was designed to get enemies, or people who had been on opposite sides of the war to work together and see that they were not so different from each other.

A number of people had objected to one particular exercise; a weekend away at a manor house for a murder mystery weekend. They had thought that there had been enough death and destruction in people's lives and that they didn't need any more.

The Ministry, however, defended their decision by stating that each person would have to work together to find out who the fictional culprit was which was the point of the exercises they had developed.

The only other detail which most of the population had objected to was the fact that none of the participants were allowed to keep their wands during any of the exercises. Although the Ministry had tried to assure them that their wands would be kept safe there was still doubt about it.

The committee had revealed that the first group of people which had been selected to complete the team building exercise were people who were in, or were supposed to be in their sixth and seventh years at Hogwarts during the last year of the war. Fifteen people had been chosen in total; five Gryffindor's, five Slytherin's, three Hufflepuff's, and two Ravenclaws.

Several of the planning committee realised that the rivalry between Slytherin and Gryffindor students was the main factor which needed to be addressed and it was because of this that they felt an equal number from each house was required. The others would make sure that nothing too serious would happen between them if anything came to a disagreement.

The Daily Prophet had a field day when the information was released and speculated about which people were going to be involved.

 _Ministry Announces First Team Building Exercise!_

 _The Ministry of Magic has announced today that the much disputed murder mystery weekend shall be the first team building exercise. The participants in will be the ones who attended their seventh year at Hogwarts during the last year of the war. We have been informed that the participants have been notified about the exercise, and that it will happen during the next week._

 _At the moment we have no idea who the participants are, but the Golden Trio, Neville Longbottom, and Draco Malfoy are a few of the people we suspect will be participating._

 _To see the full list of potential participants please turn to pages six and seven._

Speculation was rife throughout the whole of the wizarding world for days about who would be participating but no one came forward to confirm that they had been asked to take part. It seemed as if the Ministry had asked them to stay silent until it was over.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: So this is chapter two. I hope you like it!**

A week after the Daily Prophet had published their article the participants who had been selected waited outside of the manor that would host the weekend's activities.

Draco Malfoy looked at his watch and wondered where their greeter was. He knew that the Ministry would want him to participate in this and with Potter too, but he had hoped that they would assign this exercise to someone else. He had more than enough experience of death and destruction in a manor house and didn't want any more even if it wasn't real.

"Draco," Daphne Greengrass said snapping him out of his reverie.

"Yes, Daphne?" he asked

"Astoria says that she will meet you for lunch on Monday and not to cause any trouble," she replied.

Draco smiled.

Astoria was Daphne's younger sister and his fiancée. They had met one night at a charity ball which one of his father's companies sponsored, and had hit it off instantly. Although Astoria had been in Slytherin with him she was two years younger and they had barely got to know each other before he had been forced to be a Death Eater.

Astoria had later told him that she was glad that they had only got to know each other after the war was over because she was scared of him during the year that the Dark Lord had taken over.

Draco didn't blame her. He purposefully made sure that no one but his friends would come near him at school; if he didn't know them then he couldn't hurt them.

It was another five minutes until the greeter came and he heard Potter mutter 'finally' under his breath.

"So sorry I'm late. I got delayed as the character envelopes were not ready. Print error or something. How are you all?" the man said quite quickly.

Draco was shocked that someone could say the whole thing in one breath and still look jovial.

"We just want to get on with it really," Hannah Abbott replied.

"Of course you do. You all know the basic details such as you will leave your wand with me before you go into the manor, that the game will start at eight o'clock when dinner is served tonight and that it will end at two o'clock tomorrow, and that you will stay in character at all times. After the exercise has officially ended you will be required to stay an extra hour to reveal your findings and talk to the creator of the exercise. It will be your chance to give any feedback that you think may be useful to them," the man said making sure that they knew what they were doing.

"Why are we here two hours early if the exercise does not officially start until eight?" Draco asked slightly irritated. He could have spent some quality time with Astoria had he known that it wouldn't start until then.

"It is so you can read over your character profiles and get used to the manors layout. There is a map inside, but we thought that you might like some time to explore it. The character profiles not only include a detailed profile of your own character, but profiles of the other characters too and you never know some clues maybe hidden in them."

Draco nodded in understanding.

One of the things he had learnt during his time as a Death Eater was to recognise the way that other people worked, their 'quirks', and their signature behaviours. With his co-operation many of the unsolved murders that the new Auror department were reviewing had finally been solved. It was that, the fact he was coerced into taking the Mark as a minor, and Harry Potter's own testimony which had contributed in his case being dismissed.

The things he had learnt during that time though still gave him nightmares. He often had to sit at the dining room table whilst many of the older Death Eaters reminisced about some of their kills and other exploits in the name of the Dark Lord.

He shivered just thinking about it.

The greeter gave them all their character profiles and a sleeve bag to put their wands in.

"It's going to be weird without having our wands," Luna Lovegood said sighing.

"I know what you mean," Hermione Granger.

"I think all of us will miss them, Lovegood," Draco commented as he gave his to the man.

"I'm sure we will," Luna replied with a small smile.

Draco didn't particularly like Lovegood, Granger, or any of their friends still, but he had learnt to be civil towards them. He was thankful that Potter had spoken out for him, and thought he should at least be cordial with them.

The doors to the manor house opened and they all walked in.

The manor itself was completely different to Malfoy Manor. It was light and airy with a sense of tranquillity and peace. It was not as big as Malfoy Manor though, which would help as it would be easier to navigate.

"I'm going to get my stuff packed away. Are you coming, Ron?" Potter asked Weasley and the five of them including Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood walked up the stairs towards the rooms they would be staying in.

"That seems like a good idea," Padma Patil said and followed them up.

Soon they were all walking down the corridor trying to find their rooms and popping into each other's once they had.

Draco had decided to just leave his door open so any one of his friends could come in without having to knock. The only person he wasn't looking forward to invading his personal space was Pansy Parkinson.

Whoever had decided that she should come on the weekend with him, Potter, and Granger should be hexed. He had not spent any real time with Pansy since they were at Hogwarts, and he had been met with a howler at the announcement of his and Astoria's engagement. Although Pansy was still good friends with Daphne, she had made it quite clear to anyone who would listen that she would be a better match for him than anyone else.

"Malfoy!" a familiar voice called down the corridor.

"I'm in room six, Blaise," Draco called back.

He heard footsteps come down the hall and enter his room. Draco looked up to find Blaise and Theodore Nott standing there.

"Nice seeing you again, Malfoy. How long has it been?" Blaise asked with a mocking tone.

"I know, and I'm sorry. Things have just been really busy at work, and then Astoria has me helping her with all these wedding preparations; I've just not had time to come out with you," Draco confessed.

It was true though. Ever since he had taken over parts of his father's business it had grown exponentially and he didn't have the free time he once had. Astoria had also made it clear that he had to be involved with some of the wedding planning and that included going to the high end restaurants in Diagon Alley to figure out who would cater the thing.

"So that's why you and Astoria were having a cosy dinner at Chez Miraz the other night," Theo said sarcastically.

"Actually, Theo, we were testing some food for the wedding. Astoria wants the best caterer she can get, and that includes sampling the plates of the finest restaurants in wizarding Britain," Draco informed him.

Blaise laughed and said, "I'll let you off the hook then. So what do you think of this?"

"I think that the idea is somewhat alright, but I don't see why they had to put me down for doing the murder mystery weekend in a manor house. I don't think they realise that I've already had enough of that."

Blaise nodded his head a little to show that he understood what his friend meant.

"I need a drink so I'm going to find where the kitchen is. Do either of you want to come with me?" Theo asked.

"What, are you scared of going around a manor on your own?" Blaise said in a baby voice.

Draco shivered once again.

Every time someone used that voice he had flashbacks to when his aunt Bellatrix used it whilst she was torturing her victims.

"No, I'm not scared at all. Just wondered if anyone wanted one," Theo replied shrugging.

Theo said a quick goodbye and walked out of the room leaving Draco and Blaise alone.

Blaise did a quick look at the door before starting to speak.

"I thought that I would warn you, Draco. Pansy has decided that she is going to show you what you are missing tonight by trying to seduce you. She thinks that being away from Astoria and your parents would be the perfect opportunity to show you that you should be with her instead. I've tried to talk her out of it, but you know what she's like when she's got an idea in her head," Blaise told him shaking his own.

It was useless to even try and tear them apart because they loved each other and would always remain true to it.

Just as they were about to start talking again, they heard something that made their blood run cold.

A high pitched scream of terror came from below.

Draco and Blaise ran out of the room to see several of the others already heading for the stairs.

When they reached the bottom of them all they could see was a body covered in blood.

Theo was nearby just staring at it as if he had never seen a dead body before, and Granger edged towards it to take a pulse.

"Hermione?" Potter asked his voice strained.

She shook her head.

Draco felt winded.

This was supposed to be safe. How were they supposed to defend themselves with a real murderer on the loose?

Before those thoughts had processed through his mind though, he felt himself looking at the clothes that the body was wearing. He was sure that Daphne had been wearing the same colour robes as the body. It suddenly dawned on him that it was Daphne.

He walked forward and knelt down towards her.

"I'm sorry, Daphne," he whispered.

He had made a promise to Astoria to keep an eye on Daphne this weekend as she had been severely affected by the events in the war to the point where she had to see a therapist and have prescribed medication to help her sleep.

He reached out and unhooked the necklace she was wearing and slipped it into his pocket.

"It was given to her by Astoria, and I know that Daphne would want her to have it back," Draco explained as he saw the curious gaze of the others.

They all knew it was coming the moment Potter opened his mouth, but no one could have anticipated the reaction it would bring.

"Who killed her?" he asked.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: so here is another chapter for you. You should be getting a chapter a week until it's finished as I've signed up for The Long Haul Competition V. There's still quite a way to go yet so it won't be over any time soon.**

Harry Potter looked at the people in front of him and did not believe at that point that any of them had murdered Daphne Greengrass.

Although the former Death Eaters of the group were certainly capable of committing such an act, Harry doubted that they would have done it to one of their own. The eruption of defensive shouts from her friends obviously meant they had thought that he had meant it that way.

"I didn't mean it like that! I know none of you would ever hurt Daphne Greengrass. I just meant if it wasn't one of us then who would it be?" Harry asked exasperated.

"There _isn't_ anyone, Potter. Daphne was well liked by everyone. She didn't play a part in the war, and she was always kind and helpful to people who needed it," Malfoy replied frustrated.

"I'm sorry, Malfoy, but there must be a reason. It may be something completely insignificant at first glance, or something which she didn't think was a big deal, but it was to the other person," Harry said trying not to upset the other man.

It was obvious from the way Malfoy was acting and speaking that he had cared greatly for Daphne. He knew that they had been acquaintances during their years at Hogwarts, but had obviously become closer since his engagement to her sister Astoria.

Malfoy just nodded in response seemingly appeased by the answer.

"We need to figure out where everybody was at the time it happened. Then we can work out if it was one of us, or if someone else is here with us," Harry commanded.

"Blaise and I were in my room at the time," Malfoy replied quietly.

Everyone else followed with who they were with and where until Theodore Nott admitted that he was downstairs on his own.

"You didn't see anything out of the ordinary?" Harry asked eyeing Nott critically.

"No, I didn't. I went to get a drink and the next thing I know there was a scream. I dropped the glass I was holding and ran back down the corridor to find Daphne at the bottom of the stairs and all of you running down them. I know as much about this as you do," Nott recounted.

Harry nodded at the explanation. He could not see any reason for Nott to lie as he and Daphne were great friends, but something just didn't sit right with him. He didn't voice his doubts as he knew that he would be met with accusations and protests from the former Slytherins.

"Then there is someone else in here with us."

"Why don't we make sure that we walk around in pairs? That way it would be harder for the culprit to attack," Hermione suggested.

"That's a great idea, Hermione," Padma said with a thoughtful look on her face. "If we went around in three's though it might be better as two people could disable the murderer and the third could go and get help,"

"What if there's more than one killer though?" Susan Bones asked.

The thought had never crossed Harry's mind that there could be an accomplice, but he thought it was unlikely.

Harry knelt beside the body and examined the wounds the best he could.

"The wounds look as if they came from the same angle and the same weapon used for each stab. It suggests that there was only one person involved in the murderer," he informed them.

"That doesn't rule out an accomplice though, Potter," Zabini pointed out.

"Not completely, but it does make it less likely," Harry admitted.

He couldn't be completely sure that he was right, but his gut instinct was telling him it was only one person and that person was standing in the room with them.

"What do we do with…?" Lavender trailed off.

"We should leave her here and put a sheet or a blanket over her. That way when the exercise finishes tomorrow and the Auror's are called everything can be documented like it would at a normal crime scene," Harry said as his training came back to him.

 _Harry was sitting with Ron and Neville in the small, crowded training room of the Ministry listening to Auror Stevens drone on about procedure._

 _"_ _\- and always make sure that a crime scene is preserved to the best of your ability. Take notes, photos, anything that can be used as evidence to back up what you saw in case anything goes missing, or gets contaminated."_

 _Harry perked up a bit at that information._

 _"_ _What if something happens and there is a lockdown?" another recruit asked._

 _"_ _Do exactly what I have just told you to do in a normal case but in more detail. You will be given basic training by a pathologist so you can interpret wounds, and also you will be given basic training in what Muggles call profiling. Both of these things will help you immensely in catching any type of criminal," Auror Stevens replied._

Harry had taken the advice to heart and always carried pen and paper on him. He noticed that Neville had started examining the body and took out the small pad of parchment that was in his jeans pocket and started writing all the details Neville said out loud.

"Do you know a measuring spell Hermione?" he asked not bothering to turn to his friend as he wrote more information down.

"Not for this, Harry," Hermione replied apologetically.

Harry nodded his head in response.

Once he was done, Harry was handed a dark coloured sheet by Luna, and he and Neville carefully placed it over Daphne's body.

An uneasy feeling settled in Harry's stomach. He knew that this was far from over and that they would have to ward off the killer once more, but he had no idea who would be the next victim.

"I guess we should go back to our rooms. Are we still going to sleep on our own, or should we share with others?" Hannah Abbott asked curiously.

"We should probably share with others, but that's peoples own decision," Hermione replied.

"The rooms are quite big and we can fit at about four people in them to sleep comfortably, but who will be sleeping with whom?" Padma asked.

"I don't mind who I share with so long as I am not on my own," Pansy sniffled.

Harry had never really seen any emotion from Pansy Parkinson before other than hatred and loathing, but looking at her now made it clear that she was just as complicated as everyone else.

"I will stay with you, Pansy," Luna offered.

"Thank you," she sniffled once again.

"Hannah and I will too," Susan informed her.

There was an unspoken agreement between the men that they would sleep in their friendship groups rather than divide their safety network.

That evening dinner was a solemn affair which no body enjoyed at all.

Each of them had raised a toast to Daphne, and those who did not know her very well asked to hear stories about her. They were practically all the same; how funny, witty, and kind she had been.

Harry noticed that Malfoy had seemed to be right about Daphne; no one should have wanted her dead.


End file.
